CARMEL, Ind. — ADESA (div. KAR Auction Services Inc.) announced the promotion of Lawrence Cubitt to Western regional vice president and named new general managers at its Birmingham, Las Vegas, Little Rock, Orlando, and Tulsa auctions.

Cubitt brings 20 years of auction leadership and deep customer relationship experience to his new role, said ADESA COO Srisu Subrahmanyam.

“Lawrence is a proven leader who is well-respected by employees, customers and colleagues,” Subrahmanyam said. “As general manager of ADESA Flint, he had a strong focus on talent development and continues to have a profound passion for the auto remarketing industry. His success in auction operations and thorough understanding of customer needs make him an ideal leader to continue to grow our client relationships.”

Other changes include:

Jay Hinchman has been named general manager of ADESA Las Vegas after stepping down from his role as regional vice president of the ADESA West region.

Ed Burton has been named general manager of ADESA Birmingham.

Chris Beyer has been named general manager of ADESA Little Rock, replacing Angela Sims, who retired at the end of 2018.

Todd Hoagey has been named general manager of ADESA Orlando after serving as CEO of Auction Direct USA Used Vehicle Superstore, a company he co-founded in 2005.

Mike DeForest was promoted from general manager of ADESA Mercer (Pa.) to general manager of ADESA Tulsa.

AAA analysts say bigger price tags and higher interest rates have conspired to raise American new-car buyers’ average annual total cost of ownership to $9,282, an all-time high and a 24% year-over-year increase.

A new report makes the case for chasing value over price, a strategy that auto dealerships nationwide are adopting to generate higher front-end & back-end grosses while earning lifelong service customers.

Five F&I professionals will attend Industry Summit as a guest of IAS and veteran trainer Eric ‘Frenchy’ Mélon, who will select finalists for the third annual objection-handling competition and F&I training session.